1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus for managing the entry and exit of a shared vehicle.
This application is based on Japanese Patent Application No. Hei 11-98218, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
2. Description of the Related Art
There are parking lots around mass transit stations and in growing urban areas. Users park their vehicles in the parking lots for shopping, and, after finishing the shopping, drive out of the parking lots. When entering a parking lot, a user who is going to use the parking lot stops the vehicle in front of an entrance gate, performs an entry operation, e.g., receiving a ticket for the parking lot, opening the entrance gate, and parks the vehicle in a parking space. When leaving the parking lot, the user drives the vehicle from the parking space, stops in front of the exit gate, opens the exit gate, and then leaves the parking lot.
Recently, environmental issues have become highlighted, and to improve air pollution and traffic congestion, techniques have been proposed for using shared vehicles in a specified region. The techniques for using the shared vehicles require parking lots (ports) for renting and returning the shared vehicles. The ports for the shared vehicles should be conveniently provided where there are a number of users who are to use the shared vehicles, e.g., in parking lots in front of stations, in densely built-up regions, or near department stores and shopping centers. The ports dedicated to the shared vehicles may be provided independently, or may be provided as a part (block) of the existing parking lots to reduce the costs of land purchases and construction.
When the vehicle is a general vehicle (which includes all vehicles which are not shared), because the vehicle is owned by a user, the owner parks his vehicle in parking lots to avoid violating parking regulations, returns to the vehicle in the parking lot after shopping, and leaves the parking lots. When the vehicle is a shared vehicle, the user may leave the vehicle outside of the parking lot.
In contrast with the general vehicle, because the shared vehicle, which was returned to the port, may be immediately rented, few shared vehicles may be rentable during specified hours. Therefore, when users leave the vehicle outside the port, the problem arises that the number of the rentable shared vehicles may be further reduced. As the number of shared vehicles which users leave outside parking lots increases, the vacated vehicles may cause traffic jam, and decreases the efficiency in the use of the shard vehicles.
Further, since the shared vehicles is not widespread, parking spaces for general vehicles may decrease when the parking lots dedicated to the shared vehicles are provided in existing parking lots. Moreover, when the shared vehicles and the general vehicles are parked in the same area, the procedures for renting and returning the shared vehicles become troublesome.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for managing the entry and exit of a shared vehicle which ensures the efficiency of the use of the entire parking lot by providing a shared vehicle area within a parking lot for general vehicles, allows the parking of the shared vehicles and the general vehicles in a mixed manner, and can accurately conduct procedures for renting and returning the shared vehicle.
In a first aspect of the present invention, the apparatus for managing the entry and exit of a shared vehicle (V), comprises: a vehicle position detector provided in the shared vehicle; a position determining device for determining whether the position of the shared vehicle is within an entrance area of a parking lot, based on the vehicle position information provided by the vehicle position detector; an arrival determining device for determining whether a main switch (M) of the shared vehicle has been turned off within the entrance area; a return operation determining device for determining whether a user of the vehicle has conducted a return operation using a terminal for conducting rental and return operations; and a return determining device for confirming the return of the shared vehicle when the arrival determining device determines that the main switch has been turned off within the entrance area and when the return operation determining device determines that the return operation has been conducted.
When the vehicle position detector determines that the shared vehicle is within the entrance area, when the arrival determining device determines that the main switch of the vehicle has been turned off, and when the return operation determining device determines that the user has conducted the return operation using the terminal, the return of the shared vehicle is confirmed.
According to the first aspect of the present invention, the returning process for the shared vehicle is not completed unless the user has conducted the returning procedure for the shared vehicle. Therefore, when the user leaves the vehicle outside a parking lot and only conducts the return operation, the shared vehicle has not been returned. This prevents the shared vehicle from being left outside the parking lot. Further, because it is determined, based on the vehicle position, whether the vehicle is within the parking lot, general vehicles do not affect the management of the shared vehicles, a shared vehicle area can be provided in the parking lot for the general vehicles, and the general vehicles and the shared vehicles can be parked in a mixed manner.
In a second aspect of the present invention, an apparatus for managing the entry and exit of a shared vehicle, comprises: a vehicle position detector provided in the shared vehicle; a position determining device for determining whether the position of the shared vehicle is within an entrance area of a parking lot or within an exit area of the parking lot, based on the vehicle position information provided by the vehicle position detector; an arrival determining device for determining whether a main switch of the shared vehicle has been turned off within the entrance area; a departure determining device for determining whether the shared vehicle has gone out of the exit area; a return operation determining device for determining whether a user of the vehicle has conducted a return operation using a terminal for conducting rental and return operations; a rental operation determining device for determining whether the user has conducted a rental operation using the terminal; a return determining device for confirming the return of the shared vehicle when the arrival determining device determines that the main switch has been turned off within the entrance area and when the return operation determining device determines that the return operation has been conducted; and a rental determining device for accepting rental of the shared vehicle when the departure determining device determines that the shared vehicle drives out of the exit area and when the rental operation determining device determines that the rental operation has been conducted.
Based on the vehicle position information provided by the vehicle position detector, the position determining device determines whether the position of the shared vehicle is within an entrance area of a parking lot or within an exit area of the parking lot. Only when the vehicle is within the entrance area, if the arrival determining device determines that the main switch of the vehicle has been turned off, and when the return operation determining device determines that the user has conducted the return operation using the terminal, the return of the shared vehicle is confirmed. On the other hand, only when the vehicle position detector detects that the vehicle is within the exit area, when the departure determining device determines that the shared vehicle drives out of the exit area, and when the rental operation determining device determines that the user has conducted the rental operation using the terminal, the rental of the shared vehicle is confirmed.
According to the second aspect of the invention, the returning process for the shared vehicle is not completed unless the user has conducted the return procedure for the shared vehicle. Therefore, when the user leaves the vehicle outside a parking lot and only conducts the return operation, the shared vehicle has not been returned. This prevents the shared vehicle from being left outside the parking lot. Further, the shared vehicle cannot be rented until the user has conducted the rental procedure. Therefore, the rental and return of the shared vehicle can be reliably managed in the parking lot. Further, because it is determined, based on the vehicle position, whether the vehicle is within the parking lot, general vehicles do not affect the management of the shared vehicles, a shared vehicle area can be provided in the parking lot for general vehicles, and the general vehicles and the shared vehicles can be parked in a mixed manner.
In a third aspect of the invention, the apparatus for managing the entry and exit of a shared vehicle, comprises a shared vehicle, and a control device. The shared vehicle comprises: a vehicle position detector; an area storage device (port area data D1 for determining the entry of the vehicle, and port area data exit of the vehicle) for storing an entrance area and an exit area of a parking lot; an approach notifying device for notifying the control device through a communicator (transmitter 411) that the shared vehicle is entering into the entrance area; a departure notifying device for notifying the control device through the communicator that the shared vehicle drives out of the exit area; and an arrival notifying device for notifying the control device via the communicator that a main switch of the shared vehicle has been turned off within the entrance area. The control device comprises: a terminal for conducting rental and return operations for the shared vehicle; a communicator for receiving the approach notification, the departure notification, and the arrival notification; a storage device (parking information storage device) for storing the parking information of the shared vehicle; a parking information updating device for updating the parking information, based on the approach notification, the departure notification, the arrival notification, and the rental and return operations; and a controller for controlling rental and return of the shared vehicle, based on the updated parking information.
Based on the vehicle position information provided by the vehicle position detector, and on the information of the entrance area and the exit area stored in the area storage device, the approach notifying device notifies the control device of the departure when the shared vehicle is entering the entrance area, the departure notifying device notifies the control device of the departure when the shared vehicle leaves the exit area, and the arrival notifying device notifies the control device of the arrival when the main switch of the shared vehicle has been turned off.
On the other hand, in the control device, the communicator receives the approach notification, the departure notification, and the arrival notification. The storage device stores the parking information of the shared vehicle. Then, the parking information updating device updates the parking information, based on the approach notification, the departure notification, the arrival notification, and the rental and return operations using the terminal, and the rental or returning of the shared vehicle are controlled based on the updated parking information.
According to the third aspect of the invention, the returning and rental processes are not completed unless the user has conducted the specified procedures when going into or out of the parking lot. Therefore, the shared vehicle can be reliably managed. The situation of the parked vehicles in the parking lot can be obtained by communication between the shared vehicle and the control device, and the parking information update device of the control device always provides the latest parking information. Thus, the entry and exit of the shared vehicles can be securely managed.
When the user leaves the vehicle outside a parking lot and only conducts the return operation, the shared vehicle has not been returned. This prevents the shared vehicle from being left outside the parking lot. Further, because the general vehicles do not affect the management of the shared vehicles, a shared vehicle area can be provided in the parking lot for the general vehicles, and the general vehicles and the shared vehicles can be parked in a mixed manner.
In a fourth aspect of the invention, the apparatus for managing the entry and exit of a shared vehicle, comprises a shared vehicle and a control device. The shared vehicle comprises a vehicle position detector, and a communicator for sending vehicle position information provided by the vehicle position detector and ON/OFF information of the main switch of the shared vehicle to the control device. The control device comprises: a terminal for conducting rental and return operations for the shared vehicle; an area storage device for storing an entrance area and an exit area of a parking lot; a parking information storage device for storing parking information of the shared vehicle based on the vehicle position information and the ON/OFF information of the main switch, which are sent from the vehicle, and on the information from the area storage device; a parking information updating device for updating the parking information based on the rental and return operations using the terminal; and a controller for controlling rental and returning of the vehicle, based on the updated parking information.
According to the fourth aspect of the invention, the returning and rental processes are not completed unless the user has conducted the specified procedures when going into or out of the parking lot. Therefore, the shared vehicle can be reliably managed. The situation of the parked vehicles in the parking lot can be obtained by the communication between the shared vehicle and the control device, and the parking information update device of the control device always provides the latest parking information. Thus, the entry and exit of the shared vehicles can be securely managed.
When the user leaves the vehicle outside a parking lot and only conducts the return operation, the shared vehicle has not been returned. This prevents the shared vehicle from being left outside the parking lot. Further, because the general vehicles do not affect the management of the shared vehicles, a shared vehicle area can be provided in the parking lot for the general vehicles, and the general vehicles and the shared vehicles can be parked in a mixed manner. When the control device has the function for determining the entrance and exit areas, the labor to input the data into the respective shared vehicles can be reduced.